Find My Way Back To You
by vampirediva07
Summary: What happens when Lexie finally decides to tell Mark how she feels? Does he reciprocate? And what of his relationship with Julia?
1. Pick Me

_A/N: I own nothing from Grey's and my name isn't Shonda. Enjoy and **review** please!_

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><p><em>Love<em>.

The simplest of words can have so many meanings. At least, that's what Lexie Grey had learned over the past few years. Loving one man with all of her heart had caused her so much joy and yet, so much heartache at the same time. She had learned many times that she could only trust and put her heart out there so many times before she recoiled it completely. Mark Sloan had taken her heart, held it in the palms of his hands, and then crushed it. Crushed it the first time when his daughter, Sloane, came out of the blue and he suddenly started making decisions about their lives without even asking her about them. And crushed it the second time when he had a baby with Callie instead of her, like she had dreamed about in the future. Even if she hadn't been ready to become a mother yet, she wanted to be the one to make Mark a father for real for that first time.

Yet, through all of the heartache he had caused her, she still loved him. For whatever reason unknown to her, other than God punishing her, she still loved him with all of her heart. It was the reason her relationship ended with Jackson and the reason she couldn't ever hate him, despite the situations he had put her through. But it was also the reason that she couldn't go back to him. Volumes one and two of their relationship had never gone well, so she knew that trying again probably would end in disaster as well as the first two had. But even though she knew it would end bad, she wanted to try again...but he was still with Julia...the perfect girlfriend he had found to start dating. Someone even Lexie couldn't hate.

Standing in the clinic going over some charts, she thought about Valentine's Day and how they had spent it together, babysitting Zola and Sofia...while Jackson was there studying for his boards. She had originally gone over there to tell Mark that she still loved him...that she didn't want him to find out in some plastic locket after she'd died. But when she showed up with Zola, intending to knock it off as a play date for Sofia, Jackson had been there. That was the most awkward night of her life, on top of the fact that she had spent Valentine's Day babysitting so her sister and brother-in-law could have sex. Only one of the many pathetic things that Lexie Grey had done in the past year, including pining over a man that obviously didn't give a damn about her as he'd moved on with his own little family. But as she thought about it, she knew that part of her wished that the family included her, as twisted as it sounded.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a familiar voice that made her sigh. Mark's.

"Got anything good for me?" he asked, coming up behind her and standing at the counter.

"No Dr. Sloan...nothing for Plastics. It's all Cardio or General down here," she replied. "I'll page you if anything good comes in." That had been the extent of their conversation for weeks now. And she hated it.

After he left, she was relieved to have a few moments to herself, but that was short lived as Arizona Robbins came to get charts for her service from the clinic. As Lexie sorted out the kids to be treated, she saw Arizona looking at her.

"Mark is still in love with you," she finally said after a few awkward moments.

"Ex-excuse me...what?" Lexie sputtered, trying to grasp what had just been said to her.

"Mark. He's still in love with you." Arizona seemed pretty firm in her statement the second time as she looked over the charts Lexie had handed her.

"How...how do you know?" Lexie was baffled by this. He hadn't said two words to her hardly in the last few weeks since Valentine's Day, other than asking for cases from the pit or the clinic.

"Julia broke it off with him just after Valentine's Day. He couldn't say _I love you_ to her, not even after she said it first, so Julia ended it. I knew he wasn't going to say it...especially after the way he looks at you," she said, flipping the pages of the chart in her hands. "Mark only has eyes for one woman in this hospital. And it sure as hell isn't Julia."

Lexie was stunned. "Why...wha...I mean, why hasn't he said anything to me?"

"Oh I dunno...you kind of shot him down the last three or four times he tried," Arizona said, looking up at her. "And I think you told him that you didn't want to be with him."

"That's not true," Lexie started to defend herself before stopping. She had told Mark to let her go and he had, just as she wished. "Okay it is...but I was going to tell him...and then I didn't on Valentine's Day."

"Lexie, I like you...you're a good person deep down and when you're on my service, the tiny humans always take well to you. And Mark truly does love you. He loves you in the way that I love Calliope. And would do anything for you to make you see that. You just have to be willing to give him that chance and to let him prove himself worthy of you. He's done a lot of growing in the last year, especially after Sofia was born."

Lexie nodded, knowing that was true. In the last year, she'd done a lot of growing as well. She was now close to her twenty-eighth birthday, meaning she had been thinking about the things she wanted in life. And that included getting married and having a family. She hadn't been ready for those things when Mark wanted them, but now she was. After Meredith and Derek adopted Zola, she started thinking about having her own family and really started to see that she could do that. She could be a mom...especially if Mark was the dad.

"Should I tell him?" she asked, looking to Dr. Robbins for some advice.

Arizona nodded. "Don't be afraid to tell him how you feel. Fear is what keeps us from often times doing the things that would make us most happy in life. I was afraid of having children because I didn't know what kind of mom I'd be, then Sofia was born and I found that I adore her more than life itself."

"I should...I need to go find Mark," Lexie said, flipping the charts shut and taking off after Mark in the direction she'd last seen him go, stopping to turn around toward Dr. Robbins. "Thank you!" she hollered before turning around and going down the hall as fast as she could manage.


	2. Choose Me

Racing down the hallway, Lexie avoided several interns and other residents as she went looking for Mark. Her heart was beating so fast, she swore that she could hear it in her ears as she ran, hoping that she would catch him alone or at least in a place where they could find some privacy to talk. She wanted to tell him everything and let him into the place where she had shut him out for the past few months; her heart. If Arizona was right, then Mark had felt the same way she had felt for months now, but had denied out of fear and stupidity and pride. Lexie was prideful about a lot of things, including the fact that she was independent and that she had a life path for herself that included an amazing career ahead of her. But what she didn't realize was that it cost her everything in her personal life in the end, including Mark. And she had been too proud to admit that she still loved him. That hit her full force after the patient who died on Valentine's Day after he had attempted to propose to his girlfriend of eight years and she took it the wrong way because it hadn't been what she expected.

That man died and left a grieving girlfriend with the regret that she could have married the man she loved had she not been so focused on her needs so much over the needs of their relationship.

Mark hadn't been what Lexie expected to fall in love with when she moved to Seattle. In fact, she had expected to fall in love with someone exactly like Jackson Avery. Someone who was intelligent, funny, and closer to her own age. But Mark had wormed his way into her heart and she had made a place for him there that she never really closed off or gave to anyone else after they had broken up for the second time when he revealed Callie's pregnancy. It had been a rash and immature moment on her behalf when she stormed out, not giving them a chance to work through those issues because of her own insecurities. But Lexie was older and wiser now, knowing what she wanted out of life. And that was to be with the one she loved.

When she got up to the Plastics floor, she found Mark right where she knew he would be...at the nurses' station, flirting with one of the nurses. That was typical Mark Sloan rebound behavior. Once he ended a relationship, he was all about the rebound sex. Lexie knew that from experience and because she knew Mark, better than anyone else aside from Derek. Approaching the situation, she cleared her throat and looked up at him when he turned around. The nurse, obviously new, seemed flustered by her presence and walked away quickly without another word to Mark.

"Little Grey..." he said, looking at her like he had just lost his prized meal. "What are you doing up here?"

"I...I need to talk to you," she said, finding her footing for her words after stammoring momentarily. That was a Lexie Grey habit, along with word vomit and saying things that she really shouldn't say out loud.

"Okay, what is this about?" Mark asked, arching an eyebrow curiously at her.

Lexie took a breath. "It isn't something I want to talk about right here...in the open," she said, looking around at the nurses and other doctors that were staring at them. "Can we go somewhere private?"

He nodded once and walked down the hall, beckoning Lexie follow without saying a word. She knew from his body language. Following him down the hall, they went into an on-call room and shut the door behind them, locking it so they wouldn't be interrupted. They had learned that lesson during their dating days, when people would walk in on them in the on-call rooms, Lexie on top of Mark stark naked. Though Mark was unabashed about those things, Lexie was a little more conservative when it came to people walking in on her. And it was kind of a mood killer when they were trying to get it on.

Once they were alone and the door was locked, Mark looked at Lexie and she felt her heart beating fast again. There was something about the way that he looked at her that she could never get out of her head, no matter how hard she tried. His eyes were still as gentle as they had been every time they looked at her when they were together and happy. Those blue eyes were something Lexie could never forget because she'd fallen so deeply in love with them while they were dating. And it was one thing that few people noticed about Mark when they first met him since they were distracted by his muscles or his handsome smile.

"What did you want to talk to me about?" he asked, breaking the silent wall that had been built between the two of them.

Finally, Lexie broke. "I can't do it Mark," she admitted, looking at him pleadingly. "I can't keep lying to myself about how I feel when it's tearing me apart every single day. I don't want you...I don't want you to find out how much I love you from some plastic locket after I've died or some horrible thing has happened. I can't stand that I have tried and tried to move on without being able to because it's what I thought I wanted because you had started this family with Callie and Arizona while I was left behind. And then it wasn't and you moved on to Julia and I was jealous...so jealous even if I was with Jackson. That was why I threw the baseball at her. It's why Jackson broke up with me...and it's why I'm standing here, babbling on like an idiot."

Shutting herself up, Lexie looked at Mark to see what he was doing with all of that. She hadn't intended on blurting it all out at once, but word vomit was one of her specialties and he knew that about her better than anyone. With a photographic memory, it made it even worse sometimes because she retained so much information that she just had to spit it out sometimes in the most inappropriate conversations or in the appropriate ones but just too much information.

"Lex..." he started, looking at her like he always used to when she was stressed out or needed comfort. "Why didn't you tell me?"

For once, Lexie was speechless. Was Mark admitting what Arizona had told her not even twenty minutes ago? She could see it in his eyes that he was being completely honest with her in asking.

"I...I was afraid that you didn't feel the same way about me anymore," she said, feeling her eyes fill with tears. "After all we put each other through."

"No, after all that _I _put _you_ through," he corrected, taking one step closer to her. "I know that I messed up when Sloane came and I started making all of those decisions without asking you how you felt about any of it. And then when Callie got pregnant, I put you in that same position for the second time."

Lexie shook her head." It was my fault too...I didn't speak up sooner about what I was thinking with the whole Sloane thing. There was a lack of communication from me and that was my fault," she said, looking in his eyes sincerely. "And when Callie got pregnant, instead of facing the situation like an adult and talking it out with you, I ran. I ran and hid like a coward because I realized that you were getting what you wanted with someone else that wasn't me."

"I tried to make you ready for something you weren't ready for," Mark said, gazing at her with a guilty expression she knew all too well. "We were at different places in our lives and I refused to acknowledge that you weren't ready for the things that I was."

"But I am now," she finally said. "And I love you..."

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><p><em>AN: Dun dun dun...cliff hanger. Thank yo__u all so very much for the input so far! I appreciate all the support and **reviews** that I get, so please don't hesitate to leave me your thoughts!_


	3. Love Me

Lexie could feel hear heart beating inside of her ears and swore that they were turning bright red from all the blood rushing to her face as she confessed her true feelings to the man that she loved. Time stood still for a few moments as she waited and watched as her confession sank into Mark's mind. Or at least that's what she thought was going on as he looked at her, stunned. She had let everything she was feeling out at once, like a wave crashing against the sand on the beach, and now she was questioning her method. Questioning whether or not she was insane for even bringing it up again after they had been through so much together and apart. He had a baby now, with Callie, that he looked after and cared for. And they both had exes that they had broken up with because of their feelings for one another, even though Jackson technically dumped her.

_Stupid...dumb...what the hell did you just do? Now he's going to think you're some sort of desperate, silly girl that only wants him in the moments where she's vulnerable. Great...just freaking great._

Her thoughts were loud and obnoxious as she looked at Mark inquizzitively for a few moments as he studied her face. She had no idea what was going through his mind or if he even felt the same way that she did anymore. Maybe he did. Or maybe he didn't and just didn't want to break her heart again face-to-face. Either way, she was nervous and could not take the suspense any longer, so she put her hand on the back of his neck and reached up on her tip-toes to kiss him. Instead of fighting and pushing her away like she expected him to do, he kissed her back and cupped the side of her face with his hand as he deepened the kiss. She could feel every nerve ending in her body on fire for him as she pressed her chest to his. But the kiss ended all too soon as Mark pulled back and looked into her eyes.

"Lex...I still love you too," he said, breaking the silence between them. "I have always loved you, even when I said that I didn't."

"You...you did?" she asked, not understanding how that could be when he had been with Julia. And she had been with Jackson and Alex. It did not make sense to her how he could still love her when she had pushed him away so much. But then again, she had loved him too the whole time when she had tried to pretend those feelings didn't exist.

"I did. Every time I tried to get over you, there you were with your smile and that laugh of yours that pulls me back in every single time," he admitted.

"Why...why didn't you tell me?" Lexie was perplexed as to how they could have avoided this for so long.

"Because you asked me not to keep pulling you back," he replied, instantly making her regret asking that question. "I was only respecting your wishes, otherwise I would have told you every single day from that day on."

Holding Mark close to her, she rested her forehead against his chin, finally feeling the relief she had been searching for over the past year or more. Everything got so messed up and she had gotten scared of what she had right in front of her. She felt guilty for walking out on him after he told her the truth about Callie's pregnancy, but she had been scared that he would get what he wanted and then leave her behind again like he had with Sloane. But it had been her own stupid, irrational fears that had kept her from the one man that she had truly ever loved. And that was stupid in her book. Stupid and immature of her.

As she pulled back, she looked into his eyes before placing both hands behind his head and kissing him with as much passion as she could muster in that moment. His lips were warm and soft against her own, a feeling that she had been craving for months now and had been jealous to see kissing someone else. As they kissed, his hand wandered to her back and rested on the small of her back, right above her behind. She wanted him here and now, but didn't want to chance it that someone would walk in and interrupt them, so she pulled back.

"Not here...not now," she said, almost whispering. They had been caught before and everyone knew that they'd had sex in the hospital, but part of her wanted their reunion to be a private affair that no one could walk in on or interrupt. Or even talk about later when they were out in the hospital.

Mark nodded. "My place?" he asked, kissing her forehead. Something Lexie had missed in their time apart that she didn't even realize she missed until now.

She nodded and leaned up to kiss him again, this time lingering just a few moments before pulling back to look at him. "Tonight," she said, biting her bottom lip slightly.

With a nod, he smiled at her. "Tonight," he agreed, looking at her with a look she hadn't seen in a long time. It was the look of adoration that she had come to love when they were a couple. The look that told her that his eyes were only on her. As he cupped her cheek, she felt his lips brush hers and capture them in one last kiss before he turned around and walked out of the room, leaving Lexie to deal with her thoughts. Moving to the wall, she sunk down in a flurry of butterflies that swirled around her stomach. Her Mark was back. The one she loved and fell in love with was right there and he loved her too. That was more than Lexie could have ever hoped for. But the thought remained...would they be able to make it as a couple again? That would start tonight.

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><p><strong>AN: So so sorry I haven't updated this sooner! I've been working 2 full time jobs, so it's been rough. But I hope to update faster now that I have a routine again! Let me know what you think and _review_!**


	4. Meant To Be

**A/N: I'm so sorry for the lack of updates lately...but here is the next chapter. The finale KILLED me...absolutely killed me, so I decided that my story is how season 8 should've gone instead of how it did. Please _review_ and let me know your thoughts on this chapter. I modified Mark's speech to Lexie for something special here. :) Hope you all love it as much as I do!**

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><p>After Mark had left the room and Lexie composed herself enough to stand up from the floor, she left the room herself and went back to her assigned attending for the day. Ironically, she happened to be assigned to Dr. Robbins, who had encouraged her to go for what she wanted in the first place, letting her know that Mark still loved her. Now she had so much more respect for that woman. Arizona had stayed with Callie, even though she had been pregnant with Mark's baby and she had ran like a coward when Mark told her. There was a lot to be said about Arizona that was better than Lexie herself. But she was going to try and be better, have more courage to fight for the man she loved, and not run away again like she had before. Going to the pediatric floor of the hospital, she smiled and picked up one of the charts from the nurses' station before joining Dr. Robbins in the room of their patient, smiling at her to let her know that everything was okay now.<p>

"Dr. Grey, could you tell our interns who our patient is this morning?" Dr. Robbins asked, returning her smile knowingly.

Lexie nodded and looked at the little girl in the bed. "This is Ella Montgomery. She is seven-years-old and here for a bone marrow transplant to treat her Leukemia."

"I'm almost eight!" the little girl from the bed protested, laughing.

A smile crossed Lexie's lips as she was corrected. "Well, for an almost eight-year-old, you're pretty tough. How many procedures does this make for you?" Lexie knew the answer to that from her chart, but she loved spending time with the kids here. They all had such bright spirits.

"Nine in the past year," Ella answered confidently.

"Nine?" Lexie feigned surprise and came to her side to check her IV. "Well, Dr. Robbins told me that you're a trouper and went through all of them without even crying! If I were you, I woulda cried."

"Really?" the little girl perked up, smiling and holding her bear to her side.

"Oh yeah...I'm scared of needles. Terrified!" After making sure the IV was secure, Lexie smiled at Ella and went to write something down in her chart as Dr. Robbins came up to talk with her parents outside the door while the other interns took off toward their next assigned attending or resident.

"Dr. Grey...can I tell you a secret?" Ella asked, looking up at her with innocent brown eyes.

Lexie nodded and leaned down close. "Of course you can. I'm a good secret keeper." That was far from the truth, but for a child, she could keep a secret.

"I'm scared," she whispered in her childlike innocence. "Is it gonna hurt?"

"Well, you'll be asleep during the surgery...but after it might hurt a little bit, but Dr. Robbins is very good at what she does and she'll make sure you have medicine to make the hurt go away til you get better," she replied, smiling gently at the little girl.

After a few minutes with Ella, Dr. Robbins came back in with her parents and had Ella sent down to pre-op while she and Lexie prepared for the surgery. They scrubbed in with quiet respect to one another. Lexie seeing Dr. Robbins in a whole new light as someone she admired for her strength and the fact that she saved the lives of kids. Ella's transplant went off without a hitch and Lexie went about her day with Dr. Robbins on the pediatric floor of the hospital. After she was finished with evening rounds, she changed out of her scrubs back into her jeans, cami, and a black sweater she wore over it. She was nervous as she thought about going over to Mark's place again for the first time in a few weeks, but she was ready for it.

She stopped by her own place on the way over to pick up some things before driving to his apartment building, figuring that she would stay the night if they were going to have sex tonight since she wouldn't want to leave his bed at all. Everything seemed like deja vu for her as she parked the car and rode up the elevator to his floor, getting off. When she got to his door, she readied herself and took a deep breath, knocking on the door before stepping back and waiting for him. A few moments later, she heard the locks and the knob turning before it opened. Mark was standing there before her, shirtless.

"Hi..." she said, smiling and looking at him.

"Hey," he replied, smiling back at her with the grin that she loved so much. The one he only gave her when she was his girlfriend.

Reaching into her purse, she pulled out a pair of black panties and a toothbrush that she had packed, smiling. She hoped he would remember the significance of these items as she had brought them before, when she had decided to move in with him. Not that she was moving in now, but it was a sign that she was ready to take the steps necessary to get back to where they had been before.

Mark wasn't lost on this as he smirked and leaned over, kissing her once. "Come on in," he said, opening the door wider for her.

Lexie stepped into the apartment and it was like a whole new world for her. Although, it was one she was familiar with and loved. There were so many memories here that she loved, like spending the day in bed with him when they played hooky and cooking with him for holidays. Also the very bad surprise birthday party they had thrown for Arizona a few years back that did not end well at all, but ended with a very sweet kiss from Mark that she remembered even now. Everything about this place was all them and she loved it here.

Turning around, she was greeted with a more passionate kiss from Mark as he wrapped his arms around her. Tracing her fingers up his arms to his shoulders, she remembered how good this felt, feeling his chest against hers. Mark's lips left hers and trailed down her neck, making her moan slightly at the feeling rumbling inside of her stomach. One she hadn't felt in a long, long time. Even when she was with Jackson, he never made her feel this way. Only Mark had this affect on her and she never knew why until she realized that they were meant to be.

"I love you," she said, holding him close to her as he continued to kiss her neck.

"Lex...I love you too," he murmured near her ear, making a shiver shoot down her spine. "Be right back..."

Pulling away from her, Mark walked from the living room to the bedroom while Lexie stood in the living room, waiting for him. She felt butterflies in her stomach as she anticipated what was to come in the next couple minutes. Everything about the past couple of months had been leading to this moment. Looking around, she realized that there were candles lit all around the room that were giving off an aroma of vanilla and lavender that she found completely wonderful. The apartment was also strangely clean, which perked her interest for a few moments. When she pulled her attention back to the door, Mark was coming through it again with a shirt on, much to her dismay.

"Come with me," he said, offering his hand to her.

Lexie took it after a moment, smiling. He lead her back to the bedroom where she was completely surprised to find rose petals covering the bed and along the floor in a path, leading to a circle on the opposite side of the bed that was surrounded by candles. Lexie had no idea what was going on as Mark lead her to the center of the circle, but when he dropped down to one knee, she felt her heart begin to race. This wasn't what she had expected at all.

"Mark..." she said, completely in shock.

"I love you. I do. I love you. I've always been in love with you. I will always be in love with you," he said, looking up at her from where he was kneeling. "We have been through so much together that it caused us to break up twice and still, I could never fully get past the fact that I loved you. It was a sign to me that you are the one I'm meant to be with, the one that I was always meant to be with, no matter what other people said about our relationship. Everyone said that you were just a kid to me and a phase, but they were wrong. You're my soulmate. And if you say yes to me...we're going to be happy, Lex. You and me, we're going to have the best lives, Lexie, you and me. We're going to be so happy. Because we're supposed to end up together. We're meant to be. So...I'm asking you to make me the happiest man in the world. Will you marry me?"

Mark looked up at Lexie and reached into his pocket, pulling out the ring he had always intended to give her. He'd kept it all these years and now was the right moment to give it to the woman he loved. Now all she had to do was say yes.


	5. Waited So Long

**A/N: I apologize profusely for my long absence. I have just started graduate school, so my updates will be a little more infrequent but I'll still update this story, I promise! Let me know what you think of this and _review_. Be ye warned, smut ahead. ;)**

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><p>Looking down at the ring that Mark held in his hand, Lexie was completely stunned. This was so out of character for him that she could hardly believe that it was real, but upon pinching herself to make sure she hadn't fallen into some dream, she realized that this was really happening. Mark Sloan was proposing to her. All of the blood in her body went directly to her face as she blushed profusely and felt her words stumbling out of her mouth as she tried to speak.<p>

"I...ohmygod...yes...God yes...I will marry you!" she said, looking in his eyes with a smile spreading across her lips.

Though this was completely unexpected, she had been waiting so long to hear those words come from his mouth. From the moment when he told her that she could have a husband all those months ago, she had been hoping that he would be the one for her. No one else made her feel this way or even came close to it. Even Jackson Avery, who was one of the kindest guys she had ever met and also closer to her age, couldn't make her forget about Mark Sloan. He had wormed his way into her heart and made a place there for himself. A place that could never fully be filled by anyone else but him.

Grinning as he stood up and slid the ring onto her left ring finger before kissing her deeply, she felt a sense of complete happiness wash over her as she realized how lucky she really was. Love didn't always give out second chances, but here she and Mark were for round three and finally getting what they had wanted in the first place. To be together. No one understood their relationship when they first became public, but that never mattered to Lexie because they didn't understand the beautiful life that she and Mark lived together. The one person to get that first was actually Derek Shepherd's mother, who knew Mark from the time he was a boy. She approved of their relationship and said that Mark needed a younger girl to match his own maturity, or lack therof.

Lexie wrapped her arms around Mark's neck as he held his arms around her waist before picking her up and spinning her around once, placing her back on her feet.

"You don't know how long I've been waiting to do that," he murmured against her lips before kissing her.

"How long?" she asked, honestly curious.

"I've had the ring since before we broke up the first time...before Sloane showed up," he said, looking down into her eyes.

In that moment, Lexie realized how deeply Mark had been affected by all of their breakups and how they had been apart for so long. He had hurt just as much as she did, which was another reason she was so thankful that they were together again and finally happy for the first time in a long time.

"You never got rid of it when we broke up?" she asked, wondering why he would have kept something so expensive for someone he wasn't dating anymore.

Mark shook his head. "I held onto it, hoping that someday we would find our way back to each other and you would say yes to me, even after all we went through."

"No matter what people say about you Mark Sloan, you are a romantic at heart," she said, smiling at him before kissing him again.

Lexie moaned softly into the kiss as Mark's tongue traced along hers, making her heart race again for the first time in months. Mark was the only guy that had ever had this affect on her before, so she knew that he was doing something right to push her buttons. The velvet of his tongue reminded her of how sweet their kisses actually were, always leaving her wanting more. His talented hands worked their way up, pushing her shirt up and over her head before his lips reclaimed hers again. It never ceased to amaze her at how quickly the man could get clothes off and on the ground without ever really breaking the mood. She pushed up the hem of his shirt and stripped him of it after a moment, throwing it somewhere on the floor of the bedroom before he dipped down and kissed her neck.

"God Mark..." she said, whimpering slightly in desire. It had been too long since they had last done this and she had missed every moment of it.

He moved her back toward the bed, unbuttoning her jeans before sliding them down her legs, his fingers lingering on her now bare skin a little longer than usual, like he was rememorizing her all over again. Lexie stepped out of them and sat down on the bed, moving her fingers to the button of his jeans. Popping it open, she eased down the zipper and slid down the denim from his hips to the floor where he stepped out of them as well. Laying back on the bed, she smiled as Mark moved his way over her, kissing her neck and pressing his firm, muscled body to her own. A small whimper escaped her lips as she felt down his back. She remembered every contour of his body by memory. Her hand dipped down his back to the band of his boxers, pushing at them as best she could with him laying on top of her.

"Impatient?" he teased, looking at her after a moment.

"Yeah," she replied, blushing and putting one hand on his chest.

To her surprise, Mark reached between her legs into her panties and slid two fingers over her, causing her to moan loudly and gasp from the surprise. She was already wet and trembling as he moved his fingers in slow circles, teasing her and bringing her just to the brink before stopping. Looking at him, she pouted until he kissed her again, removing her panties altogether and throwing them somewhere in the room. Reaching down, she pushed his boxers off as much as she could before he did the rest and tossed them aside, moving up between her legs.

"Please Mark..." she begged, feeling his tip right against her thigh. She needed him so bad and it had been so long since they had last had any intimacy at all.

Kissing her deeply, he thrust into her slowly, inch by inch. Lexie wrapped her legs around his waist and drove him deeper still, wanting to feel completely filled by Mark Sloan. She tangled her tongue with his and moaned as he pulled out and thrust back in slowly, filling her up again. It was the best feeling in the world and Lexie now remembered why he was such a good lover.

His thrusts started to pick up as they kissed, tongues dancing around one another. With every thrust, Lexie felt herself being driven to an edge where she was about to fall off, but he held back just enough to drive her wild. Bucking her hips up to his, she knew that she couldn't last much longer like this with all the anticipation building up in her body and mind. Mark seemed to sense this as his thrusts deepened and became faster as he kissed down to her neck.

"Oh God..." she moaned, arching up to him as she felt that deep feeling in the pit of her stomach. "Faster...please..."

Mark groaned and started to thrust faster, tensing himself on the verge of an orgasm. It didn't take much more before Lexie completely tensed around him and cried out, grabbing his hair and arching up completely. The sight of her coming was enough to make him come as well, thrusting into her sporatically as he came hard and fast behind her. When he was spent, he collapsed on her chest and laid against her breasts. She stroked his hair while panting still, kissing his head.

"God I love you," he murmured.

"I love you too," she replied softly, holding him close and feeling more alive than she had in almost a year.


	6. Secret To Tell

**A/N: I apologize for the lack of updates yet again...graduate school is kicking my ass! But I hope you enjoy this little interlude chapter before the really fun stuff starts! _Review_ and let me know what you think!**

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><p>Lexie sat at the nurses' station, absentmindedly twirling the ring on her left hand, looking through some of the charts of the patients that she was supposed to be seeing this morning with Dr. Bailey. Since she was going into her fifth year of residency, she was putting in more hours with the various programs to make sure that they were all completed in time for her boards later this year. It was good to be a fifth year, but also scary as hell at the same time since she had a lot to do to prepare herself for her boards at the end of the year. But she was ready to get on with her boards to become a certified surgeon. Lexie wasn't sure what specialty she wanted to go into, but her leanings were toward Neuro with her brother-in-law as her mentor. She had the patience and talent to become a Neurosurgeon like Derek, according to him anyway. But she had a few more months to decide before her boards would be upon her.<p>

It had been a week since Mark proposed and they had yet to tell anyone just yet, opting to keep it to themselves until a dinner party they had planned later that evening. In the mean time, Lexie kept the diamond side of her ring turned down so it was subtle enough that no one would notice. And so far, no one had. They all knew that she and Mark were back together, which was the cause of most of the gossip between the nurses since they weren't exactly quiet about things in the on-call rooms. But life was going back to normal for them, which was something Lexie had been praying for since she and Mark broke up the last time after Sofia came into the picture during Callie's pregnancy. And now they were really happy and together.

While she sat at the desk looking over the charts, she looked up to see Callie standing in front of her with a smile on her face. That was a smile she knew all too well...Callie knew something. And usually that something was big news, like someone was getting married, having a baby, there was a huge surgery coming into the hospital, or someonne was getting a promotion. But Lexie decided to play it off cool for a moment to see what she knew.

"Can I help you Dr. Torres?" she asked.

"Can I speak with you privately, Little Grey?" Callie asked, nodding toward one of the nearby on-call rooms.

Lexie nodded and got up, following her to the room where they shut the door behind them. Callie immediately grabbed her left hand and turned the ring over to see the diamond, startling Lexie in the process.

"Ha! I knew it!" she said triumphantly as she threw her hands in the air.

"How...how did you know?" Lexie asked, confused as to who told her or how she found out since she and Mark had been keeping it under wraps for the time being.

Callie laughed. "Mark is my best friend...that man can't hold secrets to save his life. I found the ring months ago, but he hid it away after you guys broke up last time...I found it again recently, so I knew he was going to pop the question soon. And this past week, both of you have been too giddy...I knew something was up."

Lexie laughed a little and blushed. "Yeah...he proposed last week. We were going to tell everyone at dinner tonight...please don't tell anyone yet!"

"Oh your secret is safe with me," the older brunette promised. "I'm just really happy for you guys is all. Mark is a great guy and he's lucky to have you. You are his soulmate, Little Grey. Always have been and always will be, no matter what. And if someone is marrying into our crazy little family to be another mother for Sofia, I'm glad it's you."

Lexie smiled and was grateful to have the approval of Mark's best friend and mother of his daughter, Sofia. "I really do love him...life without him sucks and I'm so glad that we found each other again."

"You know, he became a better man when he met you," Callie said genuinely. "Mark became...human."

"He made me better too," she replied. "Before I met Mark, I was impatient and eager to jump into everything because of my photographic memory. But he taught me how to be patient and how to wait for the important things through the kind of person he was when we met. And he also taught me to be bold and go after the things that I want."

"Well you two are perfect for each other," Callie said, smiling and nodding in approval. "I gotta get back to Ortho, but congratulations. And I will see you both tonight at dinner."

Smiling and nodding as Callie made her way out of the room, Lexie turned down the diamond on her ring again so that it wasn't visible before going back out. Tonight was going to be an interesting night since they were going to dinner with Derek, Meredith, Callie, and Arizona. Since they were family to Lexie and Mark, they wanted them to be the first to know that they were engaged and getting married. In the last few years, Lexie had drawn closer to her sister Meredith, so she hoped that she would be the Matron of Honor at the wedding while Derek would be the best man since he and Mark were like brothers. They were hoping to get married a few months before Lexie took her boards that way they could postpone the honeymoon until after she had taken and passed the boards, sort of as a way to celebrate both.

Turning down the hall, she grabbed her charts and made her way to meet Dr. Bailey in one of the patient's rooms down on the next floor. She was working in general today, so she was sure to cross paths with her sister at some point, but if not she would see her tonight. It was going to be an intersting dinner for sure, but she was so excited to tell everyone since they had all been rooting for her and Mark since the beginning, right down to Derek who had been her best and closest confident with her feelings for Mark. It was weird that she was close to him like that, but who better to talk about Mark than the guy who was his best friend? And even though Derek had not been a fan of their relationship at first because he thought Mark was just using her like every other woman, when he saw that their relationship was real and true, he supported them.

After she had finished for the day with Bailey, she went to change out of her scrubs into a more comfortable pair of jeans and her long-sleeved shirt. Fixing her shirt and adding her scarf, she smiled and grabbed her things before heading out to her car. Mark was already at home, helping Arizona cook dinner since they had gotten really good at that over the past few months. She couldn't wait to have amazing food, good friends and family, and to reveal the most wonderful thing to happen to her in a long time to those that she loved the most. She thought about that on the drive home, turning her diamond over to the top to look at it, smiling at how it felt on her finger. She and Mark had waited too long for this and now it was finally happening. And nothing felt more real or genuine to Lexie than her love for Mark Sloan. They had tentatively picked out their wedding date, which would be sometime in April before she would take her boards. All they wanted was something small and intimate, much like Cristina had with Owen or Izzie had with Alex. Just an intimate ceremony with family and friends. No more and no less. As she pulled into the parking garage of the apartment complex, she straightened her hair and makeup a little before turning her ring over again and preparing to go upstairs.


	7. Dinner Party & Shower )

**A/N: I'm so so so sorry for the lack of updates! I have been in graduate school and this past semester has been crazy busy, but I hope to finish this story for you guys. Bare with me and enjoy this extra long chapter as an apology! And review!**

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><p>Lexie came into the apartment and was hit with the wafting smell of Italian food already cooking. Both Arizona and Mark were phenomenal cooks, at least compared to her, and could make anything from scratch; whereas Lexie did good to do the basics and was still learning to cook. Cooking took more talent than just following recipes, which was what she was quickly learning as she was taking lessons from Mark. But the learning was fun with him because their lessons started in the kitchen and often ended in the bedroom.<p>

"Something smells really good," she said, coming in and taking off her sweater to hang up near their door as she came in.

"Chicken Parmesan and traditional garlic bread," Mark replied, coming over and kissing her with a grin.

He looked so handsome in a tight black t-shirt with a hand towel draped over his shoulder. Lexie smiled and waved to Arizona, mindful of using her right hand so the ring wouldn't be exposed to someone else. Their secret still hadn't been revealed yet and she wanted to tell everyone at the same time since they were all family, friends, and had been close over the years because of how much time they spent together at the hospital and outside of it.

"Do you want some wine?" Arizona asked, grabbing a glass from one of the cupboards in the kitchen before finding some of the wine had.

"Oh yes, some white wine would be wonderful," she replied, smiling at Mark before taking the glass and watching Arizona pour some in it before sitting down at the little bar they had.

"Dinner should be done by the time Callie picks up Sofia from daycare and by the time that Meredith and Derek arrive too," Arizona went on as she put the wine bottle down and checked on the dinner cooking in the oven. "Give it another thirty or so minutes and we'll be good to go."

Dinner preparations went on until Callie arrived with Sofia, followed by Derek, Meredith, and Zola. Everyone was chattering away as dinner was served and Lexie found herself happily talking with Meredith about her fifth year and the boards that would be upon her in a few more months. Though Lexie had a photographic memory, she knew that she tended to ramble on when she was nervous and hoped that it wouldn't affect her score or ability to pass and be certified by the boards. But Meredith assured her that she would do fine and that it was a piece of cake once you were prepared for it. Even though Lexie was nervous, she was ready to take that step in her life and go toward the future in Neuro with her brother-in-law as her mentor. Derek told her that she had real promise in Neuro because her hands were small and nimble, she had a thirst to learn, and had real talent for what was happening in the field. And Lexie knew that she wanted to be in that field. It was her strongest desire and she was going to go for it.

About halfway through dinner, she glanced at Mark and smiled knowingly. They were going to finally tell their family and friends the good news that they had been keeping to themselves for over a week now.

"Mark and I asked all of you over for dinner tonight because we wanted to tell you all something important," she began, reaching over to take Mark's hand, revealing the ring on her finger. "We're engaged. I know that it's fast and we just got back together, but we're tired of waiting and letting things run our lives when we know we're meant to be together."

Everyone seemed pretty happy as they buzzed with excitement about the engagement. And most of them seemed relieved almost that it had finally happened because they all knew how Mark and Lexie felt for one another. Lexie had even spilled out her heart to her brother-in-law because he was Mark's best friend and the one person she could trust with her feelings about Mark who wouldn't tell him or make something of it. He had been one of the few people who knew directly that she still loved Mark…most people just kind of gathered it from the jealous glances she gave Julia or when she outright socked her in the boob with a softball. But that was neither here nor there in her mind.

"This is so exciting!" Arizona gushed as she looked at them from where she was sitting beside Callie. "Do you know when the wedding is going to be?"

"We were hoping to get married in the Spring, before I take my boards," Lexie replied. "And postpone our honeymoon until after I'm done and have a nice little break to take from the hospital."

"Oh that'll be wonderful," Arizona went on, smiling and taking Callie's hand. "If you need any help at all, please let us know because we loved planning a wedding."

Callie nodded in agreement and grinned knowingly, since she had figured out the engagement earlier that same day. "It'll be a big affair for sure."

Derek stood up and held up his glass of wine. "To Mark and Lexie. It's about damn time."

Lexie laughed and toasted with their family, so happy that all of this was finally happening for real this time. She had wasted a lot of time running from Mark because she wasn't ready for marriage or kids, but she had seen what life was like without him and was tired of running away from him and started going toward him. While she wasn't ready for kids yet, necessarily, she was ready to marry the man she loved. Mark was her soulmate and the love of her life after everything they had put each other through. But now it was just them. No more surprises with long lost daughters who show up pregnant or lesbian best friends that were his baby mama. Now it would be just them starting their lives together. Lexie was going to become Lexie Sloan and she was completely proud of that.

After dinner and a little dessert, everyone headed home, leaving Mark and Lexie alone. The apartment was all but cleaned up and she was doing the last of the cleaning while he was putting away the extra chairs they had put at the table. As she was putting the clean dishes away from the dish washer, he wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her neck once. She smiled and turned her head to catch his lips in a kiss of her own.

"Are you happy?" he asked.

"Happier than I've ever been," she told him, smiling as she turned to face him in his arms. "I can't wait to marry you and become Lexie Sloan."

Mark smield and kissed her deeply as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Their relationship had been through the wringer time after time, but they were stronger than ever because of all they had been through together as a couple and apart when they were broken up. No matter what had happened in the past, it was all behind them now as they looked to their futures together as a couple.

"I love you, Lex," he murmured against her lips, making her smile.

"I love you too," she replied, looking into his blue eyes with a bigger smile. Those were the very same eyes that she loved seeing when he looked at her from behind his surgical mask or when he glanced at her from across the room.

"Now we're alone…we can do anything we want," he went on, smirking at her in his usual Sloan-y smirk. One she knew all too well.

She laughed. "Are you trying to seduce me, Mark Sloan?"

"Possibly," he grinned, winking at her. "Are you seducible, Lexie Grey?"

Instead of a verbal response, she leaned up on her tip-toes and kissed him deeply. Everything about this man was intoxicating and drove her nuts, but drew her in over and over again each time they had broken up. He made her fall completely and totally in love with him. It didn't matter that he was much older than her, had two daughters and a grandson, and had been in a completely different place in his life. She had no choice in who she fell in love with and Mark had been the one for her all along, even if she had been in denial for a long time about their relationship after they had broken up both times.

Breaking the kiss, she looked at him and winked before turning away and putting the final dish in the cabinet and walking toward their bedroom.

"I'm going to shower, but I could always use the company from my hot…hot naked fiancé," she hinted as she was walking.

Going into the bathroom, she got out of her clothing before turning on the hot water and stepping in the shower stall. It didn't take Mark long to strip down and join her, kissing her deeply beneath the spray of the water. Her hands ran along his bare chest, making her smile in the kiss.

"Hmm…my fiancé is very sexy in the shower," she purred, looking him over once as the water cascaded down his body. There really was no other perfect man in the world than Mark Sloan and she was the lucky woman who got to have him all to herself.

"Well my fiancée is sexy all the time," he countered with one of his usual grins that made her smile more. "And I appreciate every surface of your body."

Lexie shivered as he ran his hands down her sides to her hips and further down to her backside. A while back, she found out that her behind was one of his favorite assets that she had. He knew all the right moves to make to turn her on. Out of all the men she had been with, Mark was the most skilled and talented lover she'd ever had. As he kissed down her neck, she moved her own hands down his bare back to his hips and moved one between them, grazing her fingers along his length, eliciting a deep grown from his throat as she grinned proudly.

"Lex…" he breathed huskily, kissing her neck as he pressed her back to the wall of the shower. The tiles were cold, making her shiver a little more.

He moved his hand down, lifting her leg up to hook onto his thigh, teasing her slowly with his tip. Impatient, Lexie pouted and jerked her hips forward a little, urging him to fill her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him passionately as he thrust up into her completely, making her gasp sharply. Mark kept her pinned to the wall as he began thrusting slow and deep, tangling their tongues in a passionate kiss. Her chest was flush against his as they made love in the shower.

Lexie could feel her tension building in the lower part of her stomach as Mark kept thrusting and tightened around him, gripping his arms with her fingers. Her breaths were quickening and she felt herself right on that edge as she arched her back toward him. He was kissing her everywhere he could reach and his thrusts were becoming faster and deeper as she tensed around him several more times. Digging her fingers in his arms, Lexie cried out his name as she came hard. He followed shortly after and held her against the wall, both panting and out of breath, but sated. Lexie would have happily stayed in his arms, but a voice at the door and seeing it swing open made her freeze.

"Hey Mark I just left my…oh God…I'm sorry!" Callie shouted, immediately walking out in embarrassment.

Blushing profusely, Lexie looked at Mark before both of them were laughing out loud.

"God I think that was karmic payback for when I walked in on her and Arizona in the shower," she said, shaking her head as she remembered how awkward that had been for all of them.

Mark laughed. "Well now she'll know not to just use her spare key to come in the apartment now that you're here and we're engaged."

"Think we should get out and see what she needed?" she asked, looking at him, still pressed up against him.

"Nah, she can wait," he answered, kissing her again.


	8. Christmas Pt 1

**A/N: So this is a rather fluffy chapter, but it's to prepare you for what is to come! Enjoy and as always, please review and let me know what you think!**

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><p>After their engagement was officially announced, life began to pick up pace for Lexie as her fifth year of residency began. Her sister was now an attending surgeon in General while Alex had moved officially into Peds and Jackson had continued his tutelage under Mark as a fellow in Plastics. Everyone was happy for her and Mark, saying it was about time. Jackson had even wished them well as he was now in a relationship with April Kepner and things were apparently getting pretty serious between the two of them. And even Alex congratulated her and said that he knew a long time ago that her heart was Mark's, which she thought was sweet and a little weird in a way.<p>

Everything was coming together for their wedding, which had been set for March 8th, 2014. Her boards were a mere month later and the results would be released within a few weeks after. And their honeymoon was set for June, giving them time off before her attending fellowship would begin, if she got one with Seattle Grace-Mercy West with Derek in Neuro, which had been her goal for a long time now.

But all of that was months off as it was now Christmas time in Seattle. She and Mark had planned to spend the holiday with Derek, Meredith, and Zola for part of the day and another part with Arizona, Callie, and Sofia. However, the early morning hours were all theirs. Lexie woke up early and slipped out of their bed, going to the kitchen. She and Mark had both worked the mad house in the emergency room the previous night, so he was still sleeping as she started some coffee and breakfast for them. She was making one of his favorites that she knew she couldn't mess up – blueberry pancakes – and knew the smell would soon wake him.

While she cooked, she caught sight of her engagement ring glistening in the rising morning sun's light. What once would have given her an anxiety attack was now something she loved and a symbol of the love she and Mark shared. Marriage had been the last thing on her mind when she and Mark started their fling when she was just an intern. Then she had been only twenty-four and focused on her career completely with no distractions. Now she was in her fifth year, knew where she was going and what she wanted to do, and was marrying her soulmate. And that meant the world to her.

As she thought about that, a pair of strong arms wrapped around her waist, making her smile.

"I thought the smell might wake you up," she said, turning head to capture his lips in a kiss.

"Smells good," he murmured sleepily, resting his chin on her shoulder.

"Merry Christmas," she said, smiling as she finished the last of the pancakes on the griddle, putting them on a plate for them to share.

"Merry Christmas," he repeated, kissing her neck. "Last night…you were incredible."

Lexie smirked proudly, putting their breakfast on the counter of the bar where they usually sat to eat together. The previous night, after they got off their stressful shifts at the hospital, they had come home and Lexie had slipped into the bathroom when the yarrived back to the apartment, changing into a lacy red slip before surprising him. Needless to say, he had been impressed with her surprise and made good use of it.

"I'm glad you liked it," she grinned, turning around before going to get their coffee ready.

"That outfit should make an encore appearance tonight," he smirked, moving over to sit beside her at the bar with a fork to dig into their breakfast.

Lexie followed suit and sat beside him, setting their cups down before grinning at him. "Well you might get lucky since it's Christmas."

"I've been a very good boy this year," he insisted, winking at her.

"I will be the judge of that," she retorted with a grin as she started eating.

Their breakfast was pretty tame compared to some other mornings when they both had time off from the hospital. More than once they had ended up on the kitchen floor or the dining room table, but no one knew about the table but the two of them. And Lexie planned on it staying that way because enough of their sex life was known by everyone else in the hospital.

After they had eaten and cleaned up, they decided to exchange gifts with one another before heading to Meredith and Derek's. Sitting in the living room, Lexie reached under the tree and found her gift for Mark, which she had kept hidden until she placed it under the tree last night. Handing it to him, she smiled and sat beside him while he opened it. Inside was a Rolex watch for him to wear when he wasn't in surgery. On the back, she had the jeweler engrave "Love Always, Lexie."

"Lex…this is great," he said, leaning over and kissing her with a huge smile on his face. "Thank you."

Lexie smiled. "I wanted you to have something special this year…since this is our first Christmas together where everything is wonderful."

"This is perfect," he went on and got up to go over to the tree, sliding a rectangular box from one of the branches where he had hidden it from her. Coming over, he handed the box to her. Lexie was curious about what was inside, so she opened the wrapping paper carefully and slid the velvet box open to reveal a beautiful diamond necklace in the shape of a heart.

"Oh Mark," she gasped softly, looking up at him from the necklace. "This is stunning!"

Lexie had never been given anything like this before from any significant other in her life, so she was truly touched by all of it. Mark had been so thoughtful in picking it out because she knew things like this were not inexpensive or easy to find because it also had her birth stone in the center of it. Taking it out, she turned and had him put it on her before turning back around and kissing him.

"Thank you," she said, pulling back and looking in his eyes lovingly.

"You're welcome," he replied, smiling back at her.

Their exchange of gifts ended in a make out session on the couch that got pretty heated before Lexie broke away, knowing they needed to get ready to go to Meredith and Derek's by eleven-thirty for lunch and gift exchange. She went to their room and changed into a deep green dress with red accents before slipping into her black ballet flats. Going into the bathroom, she began to play with her hair to find a way to fix it so it wasn't in her face all the time. Mark was getting dressed as she came back out with her hair in a loose bun at the base of her neck with a little braid across the top of her head. He was wearing a nice button down shirt and slacks, which made him look so handsome to her.

"You ready?" she asked, coming over to fix his tie that he was putting on.

"Yeah, are you?" he asked in reply, looking down at her with a smile.

"Just finished getting ready so all I need is to grab my coat and we can head to Meredith and Derek's. We'll make it just on time," she replied as she went to the closet and grabbed her winter coat.

They made their way over to her sister and brother-in-law's house, parking out in front next to one of their cars. Derek had finished the house a while back and they had finally moved in within the last few months, so Lexie was glad to see the first holidays at the new house with her family. She got out and went inside, greeted by a very excited Zola as she ran over and hugged her legs, making Lexie smile and bend down to pick her up. Zola was growing so fast and was starting to talk a lot more now than she had initially.

"Look at you, Zo-Zo!" she exclaimed happily, kissing her cheeks and making her niece laugh.

"Lex! Lex!" Zola cried, laughing and giving her baby kisses all over her cheeks.

Of all the children Lexie had been around frequently, Zola was really one of her favorites. Not just because she was her niece, but because she was just adorable and had this way of lighting up your day no matter how bad it was before you came in her door.

Meredith and Derek came in, greeting them before seeing them into the dining room. Following with Zola on her hip, she set her in the booster chair before buckling her in and putting the tray there to set her food on. Since Zola was nearing two and a half, they were giving her a lot more independence to eat and sit in her big girl chair.

"How are you feeling Mer?" she asked, looking at her older sister, who was about five months pregnant now.

"Good," Meredith replied, moving to sit by her husband. "The doctor said that the baby looked healthy and normal at our last visit, so we're relived."

Lexie beamed, knowing how hard it had been for her sister to get pregnant in the first place. Now they would have Zola and the new baby to raise in this house and she knew her sister would and already was an amazing mom.

"Do we get to know the gender?" she asked, sitting beside Mark at the table.

Meredith and Derek looked at each other for a moment before smiling as if to communicate the same thought to one another before looking back at Lexie and Mark.

"It's a boy," Derek said proudly, smiling bigger than Lexie had ever seen him smile.

"Oh congratulations!" Lexie said excitedly, smiling. Her happiness for her sister was genuine since she knew how hard they had tried to have a child before they adopted Zola. And now Zola would have a little brother to grow up with.

"Gonna name him Mark, eh?" Mark butted in, chuckling and looking over at Derek with a wink.

"Actually, his name is kind of up in the air right now," Meredith interjected, smirking at Mark before nudging her husband. Derek laughed and nodded in agreement.

Lexie looked around, happy and content with her family. This was the first Christmas in a long time that she had felt like this and like she was a part of something. Though they still had one more celebration to go to with Arizona and Callie, she was content to spend this day with Mark and all of their loved ones. And she knew that this is what they had wanted for a long time, to be together and live their lives without drama and without a lot of regret.


End file.
